Homeschooling? Then what, they'll work at home because they're completely unable to cope with the outside world.

You couldn't even discipline them to get their real-school homework done but now you expect them to listen to you for all of their lessons. And what are your qualifications, by the way.

I think that shielding children from the real world is the biggest mistake parents can make. Let them get out there, see what's happening, and then you might have to have a chat, i.e. "sorry but in OUR family, Barbies can't be naked in the hot tub until they're married."

I think it is great and is a wonderful idea. If you are home and have the tools to teach them the fundamentals and it will strengthen the family. I too am in the corporate world and have both worlds. I commute to work 2 days and work at home 3 days with one child in kindergarten.

I think today there are many ways of raising our children and think it is fantastic to think "out of the box" and do the best for your children. I teach my 5 year sight words, math problems and just am getting her ready for school.

I am interested in how it goes as I do see the challenges as well as the benefits.

As my kids have gone into middle school then high school, I realize more and more how dysfunctional the model for our public school system is. What's 'normal' about taking a bunch of young people, locking them in a building all day, and letting them socially slug it out? This works great for the kids who develop early to become sports stars or those with the charisma and connections to network into cliques, but a large number of kids are emotionally marginalized or even traumatized by their secondary education environment.

If you think about it, it's only been the last century or so that kids have been institutionalized this way. One room, mixed-aged classrooms allowed children of all abilities to learn at their own pace and from one another. And for centuries before that, most young people learned their trades hands-on at home or in apprenticeships. Today these methods are the exception, leaving many in our academic factories labelled as ADHD, dissociative, medicated or feeling like failures for not fitting in. For most of our civilized history it took a village and now we're told that only highly trained 'professionals' know the secrets.
I applaud parents who are willing to step outside the box for the good of their children, despite the protests of the powers that be. Keep us posted, Candice.

As a homeschooling mom myself, I have to say that I find my children are better able to deal with the "real world" than many children in public school. They are not exposed only to children of their own ages day in and day out; they interact with all kinds of people every day. Even my parents, who are not terribly supportive of homeschooling, compliment them regularly on how well they carry on conversations with adults, or play nicely with their younger cousins.

I never thought I would homeschool, either. I learned about it as my oldest child was getting ready to enter kindergarten. When I learned that I could teach her eerything she needed to know in about 2 hours per day, rather than sending her off for a full work week at the age of 5, it seemed to me to be the only reasonable choice.

My children get to work at their own pace, learning in an environment in which they do not have to wait for 30 other children to finish, or do worksheets designed to keep an entire class busy and quiet. They can move ahead in subjects that they grasp quickly, and take more time learning concepts for which they need more time. They get to play outside, and play with each other. Then they can play with their friends who attend public school when they finally get home.

In addition to their school work, they are learning how to manage a home. They help with laundry, cleaning, and cooking. I have fabulous parents, but my public education left me with very little time for such practical pursuits. As a result, when I had a home of my own to care for, there was quite a learning curve. I hope to send my children off with more preparation in that area.

They also get to be involved when we help other people. When we know folks are ill, or have recently had a baby, we get a meal together and take it over as a family. We have even had opportunity to help strangers along the side of the road together. I love that they get to see and experience these kinds of things.

Pubic education has only been in place for about the last 150 years. During the Industrial Revolution, business became involved in public schools to make sure they were training laborers; school policies became based on cost vs. results, and what has good for businesses. Many of our public educational practices resulted from this era: grades, standardized tests, uniform textbooks, teacher certificaiton programs, strict daily schedules, mechanical discipline programs (behaviorism), emphasis on quantifiable results...

Then, along came social engineering, a nifty concept in which teachers are considered public servants who should present the ideas and opinions of the controlling majority. History is only useful for teaching good citizenship (which might explain the interesting version of "history" that most of us learned - with an astonishing amount of revision and exclusion).

Homeschoolers do not lock their children in their homes and then loose them on the world when they turn 18 as social misfits. Their choice to homeschool comes from a desire for the best for their children. The kids participate in lots of activities, and get to do and see more than most children attending public school. I love what homeschooling does for our family.

Note to just_cause: I find it laughable when people who choose not to home school or don't agree with it, find it a personal attack when people choose to. We do what is right for our families. Some homeschooling families don't want their kids around negative influences and persons. As adults we choose who we want in our live. Why do we need to make our kids mix with the "real world" just because they are kids and need to be exposed to different behaviors? Don't worry. You do what works for you, and I will do what suits me.

I am on my fifth year of homeschooling my two boys. I never will understand why some people tend to think just because homeschooling has the word home in it that we stay home all day everyday. My children can talk to any age group without difficulty. Any where from babies to adults.

Homeschooling was and continues to be the best choice for us for now. Things may change but we take it a day at a time and so far it has been a wonderful experience.

Homeschooling is a form of child abuse. Let them be normal kids. Stop trying to control their every thought and action.

just_cause
The difference is, that in school, it is the school (and the government) that control when they eat, use the toilet, learn, play outside. The school determines what they should learn, how they should learn it and when they should learn it. The school determines who they should sit next to in class, and what side of the hallway to walk on when they go to class.
That my friend is control.

Just_cause, you need to get past your biases and learn about the real world. I'm the cousin Candice refers to in the article. Three of my kids are now adults; two have been successfully employed for years, and the third is in college and loving it. The way you attack homeschoolers leads me to think you have issues about your own education, your own kids or both.

Candice, I loved both this post and the next one. You're doing a great job of explaining the joys and challenges of homeschooling; I also loved the photos of your girls :)

Barb at BarbaraFrankOnline.com